Behind the Rise of U.S. Solar Power, a Mountain of Chinese Coal

[thackney]

Behind the Rise of U.S. Solar Power, a Mountain of Chinese Coal
https://www.wsj.com/articles/behind-the-rise-of-u-s-solar-power-a-mountain-of-chinese-coal-11627734770
July 31, 2021

Solar panel installations are surging in the U.S. and Europe as Western countries seek to cut their reliance on fossil fuels.

But the West faces a conundrum as it installs panels on small rooftops and in sprawling desert arrays: Most of them are produced with energy from carbon-dioxide-belching, coal-burning plants in China.

Concerns are mounting in the U.S. and Europe that the solar industry’s reliance on Chinese coal will create a big increase in emissions in the coming years as manufacturers rapidly scale up production of solar panels to meet demand. That would make the solar industry one of the world’s most prolific polluters, analysts say, undermining some of the emissions reductions achieved from widespread adoption.

For years, China’s low-cost, coal-fired electricity has given the country’s solar-panel manufacturers a competitive advantage, allowing them to dominate global markets....

[thackney]

Behind the boom in American solar energy, a mountain of Chinese coal
https://www.fr24news.com/a/2021/07/behind-the-boom-in-american-solar-energy-a-mountain-of-chinese-coal.html

...Chinese factories supply more than three-quarters of the world’s polysilicon, an essential component of most solar panels, according to industry analyst Johannes Bernreuter. Polysilicon factories refine silicon metal using a process that consumes large amounts of electricity, making access to cheap energy a cost advantage. Chinese authorities have built a series of coal-fired power plants in sparsely populated areas such as Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia to support polysilicon makers and other energy-intensive industries....

[Kamaji]

So, in other words, most solar panels are incredibly polluting once the entire life-cycle is taken into account.

[Joe Wooten]

So, in other words, most solar panels are incredibly polluting once the entire life-cycle is taken into account.

They always have been. I saw a life cycle analysis of PV panels back in 1977 done by a UT Austin Electrical Engineering Professor that flatly stated PV panels had the largest environmental impact of ANY power system. Wind power was not included because no one was building them on any scale back then. The worst factor was the fact that PV panels degrade at the rate of 0.5% efficiency loss per year. THis means that after 15-20 years, you have to replace the panels, which are not easily recycled.

[IsailedawayfromFR]

They always have been. I saw a life cycle analysis of PV panels back in 1977 done by a UT Austin Electrical Engineering Professor that flatly stated PV panels had the largest environmental impact of ANY power system. Wind power was not included because no one was building them on any scale back then. The worst factor was the fact that PV panels degrade at the rate of 0.5% efficiency loss per year. THis means that after 15-20 years, you have to replace the panels, which are not easily recycled.

Degrade is just one concern.

Getting pelted by hail can simply destroy them.

And their disposal is a nightmare.

Solar is the ultimate feel-good exercise in which there is a virtually non-existent cost/benefit.

The best solar energy scheme was created by God when he made photosynthesis work so men could eat plants or eat animals that eat plants, giving men energy and clothing for their bodies and fuel to cook and warm themselves, all the while taking carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere.

And it is continuous cycle, for all purposes self-perpetuating, unlike what men have tried to create.

[IsailedawayfromFR]

And this ain't all Chinese coal either.

China Imports of Coal